The Saga of Hikan: City of Shadows
by Hikan
Summary: Hikan, Toa Metru of Crystal, encounters the Toa Hordika and faces off against the Visorak, all while unraveling a web of secrets that seems to never end in the City of Shadows... Book Two of the Saga of Hikan.
1. Prologue

_I glanced around the cavern where I sat, eating Zulana leaves and meditating. All was peaceful. All was quiet.  
Then, I noticed the writing tablet forced into the wall. Recorded on it was the tale of my transformation into a Toa, and the hardship that followed.  
I calmly glanced at it. "That story needs not to be continued," I thought. "I would not be able to keep the anger and pain inside me if I continued that tale."_

Suddenly, I realized that I had experienced enough pain and anger. How could I suffer any more?

Smiling, I picked up another writing tablet and piece of charcoal and began to recall my memories.


	2. Chapter 1

The Toa Metru had returned to Metru Nui, and found it barren, shaken, and crawling with spider-like Visorak, named in legend as 'stealers of life.'  
Injected with Visorak venom, they became Toa Hordika, half Toa, half Rahi. They met the Rahaga, dimunitive creatures with wisdom beyond their years. Now, the Toa Hordika, along with the Rahaga, have begun the search for the mythical rahi Keetongu, whose power of countering venoms may be the Hordika's only chance to become Toa again.

Nuju and Kualus stood in front of a Knowledge Tower in Ko-Metru. When the great earthquake occured, this particular tower had split in half, causing it to resemble a Y.  
"Is this the place?" Nuju asked his Rahaga friend.  
"Yes," Kualus replied. "This is the largest ice bat nest in the city. The perfect place to learn the language of flying Rahi. Come on now, we haven't got all day."  
Nuju was about to follow Kualus when he heard an odd sound. It sounded like a muffled cry coming from below him.  
"Kualus, look!" Nuju exclaimed. "I think I found an injured Rahi!"

Just as Kualus turned his head, Nuju was thrown up into the air by an explosion underneath his feet.  
After readying his Rhotuka, Nuju looked down into the pit that had been concealed by the rubble. Then he let out an audible gasp, for curled up inside the pit was something that should not have been there.  
A Matoran.

The Matoran opened his eyes. "Water..." he croaked.  
Nuju motioned to Kualus, who took out a canteen of water from their raid of a Le-Metru storehouse and gave it to the parched Matoran.  
After the Matoran drank the water, he stared at the sky. He was engulfed in a blast of bright light, and then a Toa stood there.

Nuju jumped back. "Krahka," he exclaimed, "How on Mata Nui did you escape the Kahgarak's darkness field?"  
The Toa, (whose body, Nuju noticed, was crystalline) replied, "What Krahka? All I remember was the quake and a strange dream. In it was..."  
"That's not important," Kualus cut in. "The important thing is that you are a Toa. You are not supposed to exist. There are only six Toa on Metru Nui."

The stranger bent his head. "And if I am not supposed to exist, how could I have placed my Toa Stone in a slot in the Great Suva?"  
Suddenly, Nuju realized something. _There were seven slots in the Great Suva that day we became Toa..._   
"Come," Kualus said to the Toa. "Come with us. We must talk."  
And so the two of them walked off, with Nuju cautiously following behind.

Soon, the three companions reached the Tower of Toa, the Toa Hordika's headquarters. The crystalline Toa gazed in wonder at the tall structure, but had little time to marvel at this sight when Kualus abruptly knocked on the door.  
A part of the steel door slid open and an orange eye peeked out. "Name and business," the voice grunted.  
"Nuju and Kualus," the Toa of Ice replied cooly, "We have, uh, important news."  
The door swung open, and Matau Hordika stepped inside. "Good to see you again, Nuju," the former Toa of Air exclaimed, "How did that raid go?"  
"The raid went successfully," Kualus said, "We found enough supplies to last us for a week, and something else as well."  
The two pushed the crystalline Toa inside.

There were cries of "Sweet Mata Nui!" and "How...?"  
Vakama Hordika stared at the Toa and asked, "Who are you? And what is your power?"  
The Toa sighed. "My name is Hikan, and I control Crystal. Crystal can come in many different shapes and sizes, and that is the basis of my power. I can zap creatures with my staff and then transform into them."  
"A useful power," murmured Nokama Hordika. "But you do not have your staff here. How can we utilize this ability if you don't have your tool for doing so?"  
"Actually, he CAN use his power," said a voice by the door.  
All heads looked towards Nuju, the speaker. "I lagged behind on our walk to our tower, and I found this." He held out a purple claw-topped silver staff crackling with electricity.  
"My staff!" Hikan exclaimed. "Erm, if you Rahaga could step outside for a second..."  
"Of course!" Kualus replied and lead the other Rahaga outside.

Onewa Hordika frowned. "Why did you do that?" he asked curiously.  
Hikan sighed. "I have something to tell you that wasn't fit for their ears. During the time I was trapped under all that rubble, I kept on having the same dream, over and over. I saw, in my mind, a large orange Rahi--"  
"Keetongu," breathed Whenua Hordika. "The only hope for us to be Toa Metru again."  
"Along with this Rahi, I saw a single word: Impostor. Now that you told me that Keetongu has a cure of some sort, I saw the connection."

"Keetongu does not know how to cure venoms. He may even be working for the dark side. I'm sorry to say this, but...

**Keetongu is an impostor."**


	3. Chapter 2

There was complete silence for a moment, then Onewa spoke.  
"Keetongu is an impostor?" he sniggered. "I think being under all that crystal for so long addled your brains."  
Nokama looked worried. "But if what Hikan says is true, then we are doomed to be Hordika forever!"  
I smiled. "Not quite. Have you used your elemental powers to heal instead of fight?"  
Everyone sat recalling how they had healed an ash bear down in the Archives.  
"Yes," said Matau curiously. "What can that do? We have been stripped of our elemental power, have you not noticed?"

I shrugged. "It makes no difference. No doubt the Rahaga have told you of the time they were Toa? Toa Iruini had a healing Rhotuka. Now, we may not have a object like that, but we can substitute."  
"How?" Nuju asked, interested.  
"The answer is simple," I replied, "I need 21 Rhotuka, one of each kind. You have twelve of them already. Once we have those, I might be able to use them to create a healing Rhotuka."

Whenua Hordika leapt up. "Well, what are we waiting for?" he exclaimed. "Let's go get those Rhotuka!"


	4. Chapter 3

_And so the quest for the Rhotuka began. Each team of Toa and Rahaga searched their metru for Visorak, defeated them, and took their Rhotuka back to Hikan._

Soon, only one spinner was left to get. The Kahgarak's.

"Are we there yet?" asked Onewa impatiently.  
"Have patience, young grasshopper," Pouks calmly replied.  
The Toa Hordika of Stone frowned. Pouks was incredibly annoying, always spouting out philosophical phrases that made no sense. Oh well, he thought to himself, I guess I'll have to put up with him if I'm ever going to be Toa Metru of Stone again.

Finally, they stopped at the edge of a cliff overlooking a tower which was being guarded by Kahgarak.  
"Do you remember the plan?" asked Onewa.  
Pouks rolled his eyes. "I invented the plan. The question is, do YOU remember the plan?"  
Onewa gritted his teeth. "Of course I do," he hissed. "I use my stone Rhotuka to start a rockslide, which paralyzes the Kahgarak. You zip down and get one of their spinners, then we head back to the tower."  
"Good," replied Pouks, "let's put this plan into action."

Onewa held his Rhotuka between his two claw clubs and concentrated. The spinner in front of him glowed tan, then magohany, and finally settled at an amber color.  
"Ready," Pouks whispered, "Fire!"  
Onewa let go of the spinner and it flew down the cliff, unnoticed by the Kahgarak. Then, strong strands of energy shot out of the spinner and into the cliff face. They were dissolving the foundations of the cliff, ensuring that a rockslide would happen.

Finally, the Rhotuka's job was done, and it flew back to Onewa, who put it away for future use.  
After a few moments, the rockslide started.  
Huge stone boulders bounced down the cliff and struck the Kahgarak, who were too surprised by the attack to do something about it.  
After peering down into the settling dust to make sure that all the Kahgarak were stunned, Pouks ran down and retrieved one of their spinners.

Onewa smiled. "Great work, Pouks," he exclaimed, "Let's get this back to Hikan!"

Unfortunately, neither one of them noticed a small, red humanoid following them back to the Tower of Toa...


	5. Chapter 4

Sidorak sat on his throne, impatient. The Toa Hordika had resisted his every effort to capture them.  
Suddenly, a Visorak scuttled in and talked to Sidorak. His grin widened as he realized what the Visorak was saying.  
"Excellent. Give my thanks to Roodaka," he called as the Roporak crawled out of the throne room.

_Meanwhile..._

Pouks and Onewa had returned to the Tower of Toa with the Kahgarak spinner, and there was celebration as well as wonder, for Vakama, Onewa, Nuju, Nokama, Matau and Whenua wondered exactly how Hikan would cure them.

Only Hikan chose not to take part in the celebrations, choosing instead to sit on the tower's balcony and watch the stars.  
_It is peaceful,_he thought, gazing out into the night sky. _But some part of me warns that this is only the calm before the storm..._

_Meanwhile..._

Sidorak and a group of ruthless Visorak hid behind a nearby tower that had not collapsed when the earthquake occured. From their hiding place, he could make out a solitary Toa sitting alone outside.

He prepared to attack.

_Meanwhile..._

Hikan was so absorbed in watching the stars that he never noticed the shadows creeping up on him.

In an instant, he was gagged and thrown into a bag so quickly that Sidorak never noticed that he wasn't a Toa Hordika.

The group slipped into the night with their prize.


	6. Chapter 5

Hikan woke up and looked around. He was in some sort of underground chamber, with at least a thousand pods arranged in comb-pattern formations.  
"Ugh... where am I?" he wondered.

-

It was the morning after the Toa Hordika had found the last of the Rhotuka spinners Hikan needed, and Nuju woke early to get some fresh air. All the Bula wine he had drunk last night was making him dizzy, and he was certain that a breath of fresh air would clear his senses. 

Walking out the door, he stopped and frowned. Hikan was supposed to be on guard duty, yet he wasn't there. There were signs of a scuffle and a trail of Visorak prints leading to the Coliseum.

Nuju ran back inside to wake everybody up. If Hikan was in danger, then it would take all of them to save him.

-

Hikan felt he needed to explore his new surroundings better, so he switched to a Ruru and looked around.  
Suddenly, he noticed a lone figure appearing out of the shadows.  
"Hello, Hikan," the female Ta-Matoran murmured.  
"Reka!" shouted the surprised Toa of Crystal.

-

Soon, Nuju had woken up everybody, and they were all preparing for the journey. Nokama was in charge of healing supplies, Vakama made sure everyone had a weapon at all times, Whenua and Onewa were carving extra spears in case they needed them, while Nuju and Matau were drawing the trail on a stone tablet, so the group wouldn't get lost.  
All six Rahaga were calling Rahi to help Nokama, Nuju, Vakama, Onewa and Whenua get to the Coliseum quickly, since only Matau could fly.  
Everyone was so busy that they didn't think about what they would do once they arrived at the Coliseum.  
That could be a fatal mistake.

-

"Reka?" asked Hikan, "What are you doing here?"  
"It's okay, Hikan," whispered Reka, "Don't worry about me now."  
"But I must!" cried Hikan. "As a Toa, it is my duty to protect all the Matoran, including you."  
"Oh, Hikan," Reka laughed. "That's really nice of you to say that."

And with that, she kissed him.

-

"Are we close?" asked Nokama.  
"We're almost there," answered Nuju. "These tracks are very easy to follow. I wonder if they _wanted_ us to follow them?"  
"Save your boringtheory for later, bigbrain!" called Matau as he swooped down low to avoid a strand of web.  
Nuju sighed. Even as a Hordika, Matau still was ignorant of the future.

-

Hikan was stunned. Reka giggled and kissed him again.  
The Toa of Crystal could feel his mask turning red. "I, uh, I..." he murmured.  
Then, he abandoned all shyness and returned the kiss.  
As he closed his eyes, Hikan never noticed that Reka was changing. When he did open his eyes, however, he jumped back with a yelp.  
For standing in from of him was definitely not Reka. In fact, it wasn't even a Matoran at all.  
He didn't realize who it was, then something that Onewa had told him about popped into his head.

It was Roodaka.


	7. Chapter 6

I fell onto the dusty floor, staring in shock at this... this _thing_ that I had just kissed. How could this be? I hoped that this was all just some frighteningly real nightmare, and that any moment now I would awake in my hard bed at the top of the Coliseum, back before it all began.

Seeing I was moving away, Roodaka called out, "No! Wait, Hikan! I can explain!"

"I don't think there's anything to be explained," I snarled back, pulling out my staff, "How could I have had a crush on Reka all these years, and now find out that she's really the viceroy of the Visorak hordes? It's pretty self-explanatory, if you ask me."

"B-but you see, Hikan, I _had_ to take Matoran form!" Roodaka exclaimed. "If you'll just let me tell my side of the story..."

"No." I calmly replied. "You're a hideous, evil, disgusting creature. You don't deserve to live in this wonderful city that our protector Mata Nui has built! In fact, you don't even deserve to _live_! So that's why I'm going to kill you, right here and right now. Goodbye, Roodaka."

I pointed my staff towards Roodaka and started to build up a single, deadly bolt of energy. Suddenly, I felt something across my face and I staggered back, eyes half-closed.

When I opened my eyes, Roodaka was standing there, with one hand at her side.

Confused, I felt my mask. It was burning with pain. Suddenly, in that moment, I knew just what had happened.

Roodaka had slapped me.

The viceroy leaned in. "So," she hissed menacingly, "Are you going to let me tell my side of the story or not?"

Not wanting to be slapped again, I nodded yes.

-

"So," I said, sitting down on the cold, hard floor of the storage chamber, "tell me _your_ side of the story, Roodaka."

"Well," she began, "Sidorak had just finished conquering the storm-ravaged isle of the Sotorans. Their princess, Kora or something like that, had already left because royal life was incredibly boring for her, so the Sotoran were easily overthrown. Without a leader to guide them, they were helpless."

Her lips parted in a smile. "It was great fun watching my Boggarak encase them all in cocoons. The screams lasted all night."

"Just stay on topic, okay?" I replied impatiently.

Taking my advice, Roodaka moved on. "After that, we traveled the underground tunnels to Metru Nui; the last remaining environ. Then, we..."

Snapping away from the story, she asked, "Hikan, do you know when the Visorak came to Metru Nui?"

I did not have the answer to that one. "Um... ah... three months ago?"

"No, Hikan. They were here before Lhikan and his team of ten Toa fought the Kanohi Dragon. They were here before the Coliseum was built. And they were here before the Great Cataclysm."

"No!" I gasped.

"It's true, Hikan."

"The Visorak have been in Metru Nui... _all along_."


	8. Chapter 7

I sat on the floor, stunned at what Roodaka had just told me. Was it really true?

Had the Visorak been in Metru Nui _all along_?

"I have just one question, Roodaka," I asked curiously. "Where did the Visorak hide?"

"Why, don't you know?" she answered. "Remember that fateful night, the night you had your heart broken?"

"But what does that have to do with..."

I suddenly realized the answer. "Oh."

Before I had the chance to ask any more questions, a gigantic, orange foot smashed through the ceiling.

Roodaka screamed, and I stood in front of her, anxiously waiting for whatever that monster was.

But, in my heart, I already knew who it was.

Keetongu.

-

The Toa Hordika had almost reached the Coliseum. The farther they walked, the clearer they could see that something big had smashed through one of the walls.  
Soon, they reached the gates.

Entering the Coliseum, they noticed that the tracks led to a nearby door. But something was standing in their way. A big, mean, red thing.

It was Sidorak.

"Well, well, well," the ruler of the Visorak sneered. 'If it isn't the Toa Weaka, coming out to play. Well, if you want to play, I must warn you. I don't like to play by the rules."

And with that, he hurled a ball of shadow energy at Matau Hordika.

Matau was quick to react, however, and sent a Rhotuka whirling in front of him.

The wind energy from Matau's Rhotuka managed to keep the energy ball away, which gave the other Hordika time to plan a counterattack.

Nokama finally decided on a plan. "We need to combine our Rhotuka. That's the only way!" she concluded in a satisfactory way.

Following her advice, Vakama, Nuju, Onewa and Whenua charged up their Rhotuka and handed them to Nokama, who was ready to combine them with her own.

But something was missing...

"Matau?" asked Nokama.

"What is it, watersister?"

"Can you give us one of your Rhotuka?"

Matau sighed. "I suppose so. But only if you take me out when this is all over."

Vakama especially looked outraged at this, but Nokama confidently nodded and Matau sent a Rhotuka flying over to her.

"Got it!" the Toa Hordika of Water called as she caught the spinning wheel of protodermis in her hands and added it to the Rhotuka in her hands.

Suddenly, there was an explosion of light. Crimson, navy, viridian, white, amber, and obsidian lights appeared around the Toa Hordika, and flew into the Rhotuka in Nokama's hands, combining the elements.

At last, when the light subsided, there was a lone Rhotuka in Nokama's hands. It was the color of saffron, and glowed with some sort of internal energy.

Nokama charged it up, and sent it, whirling, at Sidorak. The ruler of the Visorak tried to dodge the Rhotuka at first, but it split itself into many copies, making it difficult for Sidorak to escape.

Eventually, the Rhotuka hit their target. Beams of gold shot out from Sidorak's body, and he fell to the ground, dead.

Relieved that the had defeated their foe, the Toa Hordika rushed to the door, unaware that on Sidorak's body there was a faint trace of orange...


	9. Chapter 8

The Toa Hordika rushed towards the small door, ready to blast through it and rescue Hikan.

Suddenly, they heard an evil cackle and, with a flash of red, something landed in front of them, denying them entry.

It was Sidorak.

"Fools!" he hissed. "Even a combination of the elements cannot defeat me! I was taught how to defend myself by the Brotherhood of Makuta many years ago. I thought it was foolish learning how to defend rather than attack, but I think that it just paid off." He grinned evilly and withdrew a large staff with a red crystal at the top.

"This is a staff made with Red Lightstones. It is incredibly deadly and efficient. Just another present from the Brotherhood."

And with that, he swung the staff towards the Toa Hordika in a single, graceful slash.

But before it made contact with the Hordika's heartlights, it clinked against something blazing with heat.

Vakama's Blazer Claws.

The two foes slashed and parried in a duel that took them to the center of the floor.

Vakama may have had the element of surprise, but Sidorak had the advantage in strength.

Seeing Vakama weakening, Nuju looked around for something that could help his fellow Toa.

Seeing that the controls for the Coliseum floor were still intact, he spotted a ladder leading up to the control platform and began to climb.

Nuju saw the heads of the other Hordika turn towards him, but took no notice. It was a long climb, especially since Nuju was not as athletic as some of the other Toa, but eventually he hauled himself onto the platform.

There were four crystal buttons on the control panel; red, green, yellow, and white.  
But there was only one problem...

The buttons weren't labeled.

"Mata Nui!" grumbled Nuju. But he soon realized that since Dume was the only one who ever used the controls, it was obvious that he had memorized the function of the controls, so there was no need for labels.

Nuju took a chance and pressed the red button. Nothing happened, except for hidden lights in the walls taking on a red hue. The Toa Hordika of Ice assumed this was to recreate the enviroment of Ta-Metru during Akilini matches.

Next up was the green button. Nuju pressed it and the doors of the Coliseum opened, bringing in a fresh draft.

Feeling desperate, Nuju hit the yellow button. Suddenly, Nuju's face appeared on the screens placed around the Coliseum.

Sidorak suddenly noticed the screens and stared, then looked toward Nuju, grinned evilly again, then, pushing Vakama Hordika aside, prepared to throw his spear towards Nuju in an attempt to keep Nuju from reaching the last crystal.

But Sidorak's plan was all for naught, as Nuju hit the last button and a low rumbling sound filled the air.

Nuju had activated the Coliseum's moving floor.

Seeing a small panel near the wall light up, Onewa tiptoed towards it and found that it was a grid of honeycomb shapes. Tentatively pressing one section, he saw that a part of the floor rose into the sky.

Suddenly realizing what the panel was for, he pressed the part of the panel where Sidorak was standing.

As Sidorak rose into the sky, he lost his balance and fell towards the ground, but not before his staff fell and struck Nokama's back.

The Toa Hordika of Water cried out in pain as Sidorak crashed to the floor, vermilion blood splattered across the protodermis ground.

Matau rushed over to see to Nokama, but Vakama pushed him aside. "We don't have time to tend to her!" he growled. "We should concentrate on rescuing Hikan!"

Matau raised one eyebrow. "Is this how you treat your women?"

Vakama growled, his pride deeply hurt. He led the five Toa Hordika to the door, not knowing what lay behind it...


	10. Chapter 9

I stared up at Keetongu. His large body was plated in orange armor, and his crimson eye looked down at me and Roodaka. Keetongu let out a growl, then, with footsteps of thunder, advanced towards us.

I was ready to fire a blast from my staff when Matau, Vakama, Onewa and Whenua rushed in. They stopped dead in their tracks at the sight of Keetongu, then advanced forward.

The large orange beast growled again at the sight of the Hordika, reached out his hand, and picked up Matau.

Matau, having been a test driver in his Matoran life, was used to dangerous situations like this. However, what he saw next froze him with fear.

He was dangling almost a foot away from Keetongu's chest plate. But it wasn't the height, or the sheer size of the monster, that scared him.

Where the chest plate _should_ have been was a cockpit. And inside, pushing buttons and waving hello, was someone who he had hoped he would never see again.

Sidorak.

"Vakama!" called out Matau. The Toa Hordika of Fire took no notice, so he decided to try again.

"Vakama! You're an akilini-headed firespitter whose masks look like Maha droppings!" Matau shouted.

That got Vakama's attention. Just not in the way Matau would have preferred.

The Hordika roared loudly and fired a burning-hot Rhotuka at Matau. The Rhotuka caused Keetongu to clench his fist that was holding Matau in pain, which revealed the hidden cockpit to the others.

"Keetongu is mechanical?!" I exclaimed, dumbstruck. "But... how? It's simply not possible!"

Roodaka seemed equally as surprised as the rest of us, and stared in horror at the evil monster her darling Sidorak had become.

Sidorak took no notice, and, with the push of a single button, sent Keetongu's fist down at me.

I closed my eyes as Keetongu's robotic fist plunged down towards me, waiting for the inevitable.

I was going to die.


	11. Chapter 10

I closed my eyes as Keetongu's robotic fist plunged down towards me, waiting for the inevitable.

Suddenly, I heard a growl, and Roodaka jumped in front of me. She fired a mutation spinner at the arm, but it was deflected and hit Vakama instead.

He began to twitch a little bit, and then he was covered in an explosion of fire. His blazer claws morphed into his hands, which became wreathed in flame, and his eyes glowed yellow with an insatiable hatred. Last to transform were his arms and legs, which grew at such an alarming pace that their armour flew off and his arm and leg muscles bulged with power; but it was not a controlled power, it was a power fuelled by the animalistic rage of the full-fledged Hordika.

The other Toa Hordika stared in horror at their leader's transformation.

Vakama had become a full Hordika.

While Onewa, Matau and Whenua tried to soothe their leader, there was one Hordika who was strangely absent.

Nuju.

While the others had gone down to rescue Hikan, he had chosen to stay behind and hide on Turaga Dume's platform. Suddenly, he heard a soft sob that he immediately recognized as being Nokama's, and quickly climbed down so he could help her.

Nokama, having finally awoken from the slight stupor Sidorak's weapon had inflicted upon her, raised her head up to look at Nuju.

"Nuju…" she whispered in a voice that seemed cracked and heavy. "What… what happened?"

He smiled. "I'll tell you later. Right now, we need to help the other Hordika. Can you walk alright?"

She nodded. "I think so."

And so, Nuju helped Nokama up to her feet, and the two Toa Hordika made their way through the door.

They ran through a maze of confusing tunnels, their faces illuminated by the eerie blue light given off by the Lightstones affixed to the tunnel walls and their feet making little sounds against the worn-down passageways. Eventually, the tunnel ended at a rather large chamber.

"Are you sure this is the one?" Nokama asked, nervous and out of breath. "We could have gotten lost."

Suddenly, they felt the ground move, and there was Keetongu, smiling down at them, with Sidorak in the cockpit.

"Yeah, Nokama," replied Nuju sarcastically. "I'm pretty sure this is the right room."

-

I saw that Keetongu had turned his back to us, and leapt at my chance to defeat him and Sidorak once and for all.

Motioning to Roodaka with my head, we stood at Keetongu's legs and waited to strike.

However, there was one little problem neither of us had anticipated.

Vakama.

He rushed forward in his Hordika state towards Roodaka. She transformed into Reka in an attempt to hide, but she was unsuccessful.

And with a single swipe of Vakama Hordika's flaming hand, Reka died.

I sobbed in pain as the flames consumed my lover. For me, there was no reason to live now, now that the only thing that mattered was gone.

Keetongu took a few more steps, and as the ground shook, a part of the wall fell right towards me.

I felt the wall fall on me. I felt the life being squeezed out of my lungs. And I felt the one thing that I had been dreading.

I felt death.


	12. Chapter 11

As I lay there, on the stone-cold floor of the Coliseum basement, I felt an odd sensation run through my body. It was very unusual; icy cold yet burning hot at once. Suddenly, my lifeless body began to hover into the air, and disappeared with a flash.

Darkness surrounded me, which was soon replaced by a starry tunnel full of whirling portals. I zoomed through the passageway, glancing at the portals as I went. I saw six beings that looked oddly like Toa running down a dark tunnel; a snow-white figure confronting a monstrous dark creature; two beings clashing on a barren field, one purple and the other blue; another Toa-like figure approaching a coffin of crystal; and numerous other sights. However, the more I traveled within the tunnel, the more I noticed a very bright light at the end.

And in the blink of an eye, I had reached the end of the tunnel and was launched right through the wall of light.

I was on a tropical island surrounded by clear turquoise waters, where Matoran played in the golden sands. _Is this Artahka?_ I wondered.

As I alighted on the soft sands, my mind was overwhelmed with a picture of a temple, somewhere in the jungle. Using my mind as a guide, I made my way across the beach and into the tropical forest, where Brakas leapt through the trees and Nui-Jaga scuttled across the forest floor.

I promptly arrived at a temple, which I recognized as the one in my vision. It was impressive, with huge blue crystals forming arches overhead, two stained-glass windows on each side of the door, and a stone insignia on the front of the roof comprised of the number 24 with a gavel across it.

Entering, I found myself face to face with a group of 24 people, all dressed in long cloaks that obscured their facial features and with each cloak unique. One of them, whose robe was a golden colour, stepped forward. "Greetings, Hikan, Toa of Crystal. Welcome to the Temple of the Jury of Time. I am Teranil."

Teranil turned to his fellow members. "Does anyone have anything to say about the guilty party's actions?"

_The guilty party? Who's that?_ I wondered. Then a sickening thought crossed my mind: they were talking about me. This jury was going to decide my fate, and I wasn't too pleased about it.

A member in a bluish-grey robe spoke up. "Why can't the guilty party have a say in all of this?"

Another member, in muddy brown robes covered in orange slime, turned towards the other member. "Silence, Kynna! It is not your turn to speak."

"No one asked for your opinion, Xantan," she shot back.

Teranil fired a ray of light from his palm at the two, and Kynna and Xantan ceased quarreling. "Silence! You two know better than to argue like that! Xantan, why don't we hear what you have to say first. Kynna can state her opinion after."

Xantan looked at the gold-robed member and bowed. "Thank you, Teranil. Now, Hikan is obviously highly dangerous. I mean, he killed two Matoran!"

"Yes, but he did help the Toa Hordika defeat Keetongu," Kynna objected. "Shouldn't that count for something?"

Teranil looked at her. "Yes, but killing two Matoran is more serious than helping defeat a giant robot, I'm afraid. Now I will conference with my sister Terabi to reach a conclusion."

The two moved away from the group and began talking quietly. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, they finished conferencing and walked over to where I was standing.

Teranil was the first to speak. "Hikan, you have been decided guilty of killing two Matoran."

Terabi spoke next. "As a result, you will be required to release the life energy of the two Matoran, Derone and Vira, that you killed. There is also a second part of the punishment that will not be disclosed to you."

She waved her hands in front of my chest, and two floating wisps of smoke- one lime green, the other orange- flew out of my chest and landed on her left palm. Terabi placed them in crystals that she retrieved from her pocket.

Then she turned to the rest of the Jury. "Ramtor, could you please…"

A grey-robed member stepped down and walked towards me. I could see that sown into his robe were millions of tiny crystals that reflected the light pouring through the stained-glass windows. He began to wave his hands over my body and I felt something odd happening to my arms and legs. It felt like they were frozen.

I looked over at them and gasped. They were frozen. (Frozen in crystal, to be exact.)

Soon, my body was encased inside a crystal coffin, and with a wave of Ramtor's palm I fell asleep.

However, in the few moments before plunging into unconsciousness, I heard Terabi conversing with her brother.

"Teranil, where shall I put him?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe the sea around the Great Spirit fortress?"

Then I fell asleep, and was plunged into eternal darkness.


	13. Epilogue

Whenua Hordika fired an earth spinner at Keetongu, and growled in frustration as the giant robot merely deflected it and sent the jet-coloured Rhotuka towards the wall, where it solidified into a sheet of rock.  
He and the other Hordika were fighting Keetongu without success- well, minus Vakama, who was being held in a cage of electricity from a Suukorak spinner that they had been commissioned to collect for Hikan. The Toa Hordika of Earth glanced over at Vakama and was met with a burning, acid-yellow gaze of pure hatred. Vakama would have been an immense help against Keetongu, as fire melts metal, but since he became a full Hordika, Vakama was a threat that had to be contained.

Two other spinners flew through the air, their flight paths illuminated by sparkling rays of aqua and amber. It seemed that Nokama and Onewa were trying to create mud in an attempt to delay Keetongu's wave of destruction. A viridian spinner flew through the air next; that was Matau's. This was good, as Whenua needed time to think. How on earth were they going to defeat this monstrosity?

He looked back at Vakama for inspiration, and then it came to him. In the forges of Ta-Metru, workers such as Vakama had often relied on assistance from robotic creations called 'fire drones'. Fire drones were robots, right? Didn't robots have an off switch?

Whenua sucked in deeply. If Keetongu _did_ have an off switch, where would it be? He'd need _three_ eyes to find that switch's location... hold it. That was it! Eyes!  
The Toa Hordika of Earth concentrated on the earth energies within him, upon which his body began to glow with a soft grey light. Then, when he felt the energy had built up enough, Whenua let it loose.  
A single, deadly beam of energy shot from his chest and aimed straight for Keetongu's blinking red eye. The force of the beam blew the eye apart, and thus a giant orange robot slumped to the floor, causing a huge cloud of dust in the process.

Keetongu had been defeated.

As the fog cleared, Whenua could see Nuju, Nokama, Matau and Onewa standing in silence, not daring to believe that their adversary had been vanquished. Then the silence broke.

"Ya-HOOOOO!" 

Then they all laughed, but weep, for the laughter did not last.

"Uh, guys, where's Sidorak?" asked Nuju.

All thoughts of merriment vanished from their minds as they stared in horror at Keetongu's cockpit, which was unmistakably open.

Sidorak had vanished.

-

A few kios north of the Coliseum, a single figure stood alone on a rocky cliff.  
It pulled out a glistening oval-shaped jewel that pulsed with darkness but also had an orange tinge to it.  
The figure opened up a portal, and vanished to a new time and place. This time, it would have its revenge.

-

_I awoke from my sleep with a start. Where had those last few memories come from? I didn't recall experiencing them...  
Something strange was going on. I was gaining new memories, ones that I had never even had in the first place!  
This needed investigation, but not before I got some more sleep._

Yawning, I fell asleep again, and let the newfound memories overcome my mind...

**To be continued in The Saga of Hikan: Dawn of War...**


End file.
